Archives for 2014

Cardpool: Purchasing Discounted Gift Cards

March 2, 2014 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Cardpool

In stretching your dollars, Cardpool is a service that buys and sells gift cards. If one has a gift card that she will not use, she can sell her gift card to Cardpool for 70-92% of the value for cash.

Cardpool then sells legitimate and active gift cards to customers at a discounted rate without sales tax or shipping charges.

Per Cardpool, all their gift cards have no fees and no expiration dates.

If the purchased gift card is a physical card, then Cardpool will mail the discounted card to you. Delivery typically takes 3-7 business days with FREE shipping.

For electronic gift cards, Cardpool will e-mail within 1 business day the discounted card’s code and any pin numbers needed to use the gift card online.

Should you experience any issues, Cardpool has a purchase guarantee program to refund your purchase price. With all these benefits, I tried Cardpool and was very impressed and satisfied with my order.

My Cardpool Experience

Though I have not sold any gift cards to Cardpool, I have purchased discounted gift cards. The ones I purchased where electronic gift cards.

My experience was fantastic. Once I purchased the three gift cards, I received a confirmation that the electronic codes would arrive in my inbox within 24 hours.

Keeping an eye on my inbox, my electronic codes arrived within 20 minutes of my purchase which I used the full amount on each gift card immediately. My order processed without incident, and I saved over $30 by purchasing discounted gift cards from Cardpool.

Cardpool Tips

I only purchased gift cards to cover the subtotal of the amount in my shopping cart. As I was not sure if I could use a gift card amount to pay for the taxes, I erred on the side of caution since I did not want to have a gift card with a remaining balance.

Though I had a great experience, there have been a number of Cardpool users who have experienced problems when they did not use the entire balance in one transaction. Though there are documented incidents where customers purchased gift cards and the merchant did not accept them, I did not experience this problem.

Should I have, I would have dealt with the merchant, in my case Sears, to get the reasoning behind the denial. Then I would have contacted Cardpool, who has a 100-day purchase guarantee.

My future with Cardpool

Finding this service a wonderful way to stretch our dollars, I will definitely purchase from Cardpool again. Many other customers have found this service beneficial as some gift cards are discounted up to 35% off the purchased amount. I was thrilled with the 7% discount as every little bit helps.

If you choose to use Cardpool, then access the site via my referral link to get $5 off your first purchase. Wow! I wish I had received a referral link to save an additional $5. Oh well, though I cannot get this deal, you can. 🙂

In stretching your dollars, I can recommend purchasing discounted gift cards from Cardpool. However, I have no experience with selling gift cards to Cardpool. Honestly, I do not foresee needing to sell a gift card, but I wanted to share this resource with you because you might need the cash.

Cardpool is another resource to help you in using time wisely while stretching your dollars. Happy stretching!

This post contains Using Time Wisely affiliate links at no additional cost to you. For more information about Using Time Wisely’s associations with providers, please read my disclosure policy.

Question: Have you sold or purchased discounted gift cards through Cardpool?

Great Clips: $5.99 Haircuts – March 1-7, 2014

March 1, 2014 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Great Clips

Haircut time! Participating Great Clips hair salons are running $5.99 haircuts. In Ohio, the promotion started February 23 and continues through March 3, 2014.

The television advertisements running here in South Carolina report the $5.99 haircuts promotion runs from March 1 through March 7, 2014.

I realize that many have issues with businesses like Great Clips. If you get a great stylist, then you will love Great Clips. However, it only takes one bad haircut to ruin any chances to make the mistake right. I get it.

As I have had really good experiences at Great Clips, I continue to use their services. Usually I wait for a coupon, but with this promotion, no coupon is necessary.

Since I cut my husband’s and children’s hair, I am the only one in our family who needs to pay for a haircut. In stretching our dollars, I find Great Clips a beneficial option. Their online or app-based check-in system saves me time as I can check-in before leaving my home and shave off minutes waiting for an available stylist.

Saving time and stretching our dollars is possible with promotions like Great Clip’s $5.99 haircuts. Paying for the haircut and tip is the easy part after finding a good time this week to check-in online and head to the salon. Happy savings!

Question: How do you save money on your family’s hair care needs?

Getting Lost in the Checkout Line

February 28, 2014 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

With rain checks, loyalty cards, sale prices, paper coupons, e-coupons, bag credits, and children, it is no wonder one gets lost in the checkout line.

Though I can navigate the coupon process at checkout, I apparently cannot remember my children.

Yes, you read that correctly. You see, we were shopping at Publix this week.

Miss 3 had been happily sitting inside the grocery cart until we reached the checkout lane. At that time, she wanted to help load the groceries onto the conveyor belt and asked to get out of the cart.

Getting Lost in the Checkout Process

In unpacking the cart, I reached in, picked her up, and let her out of the cart. At which time, she began to roam.

I was in-tune with our cashier as I dealt with the rain check, loyalty cards, paper coupons, and e-coupons. As we checked out, the employee started pushing our cart out the door. I check for Mr. 8 and Miss 6, and we went to the van.

Upon getting the van open and transferring the bags from the cart to our trunk, I realized that Miss 3 was no longer in the cart. Panic set in as I realized that I left her inside the store.

Recovering from the Checkout Process

Sending Mr. 8 to rescue her, I waited to see them both exit the store. When they emerged, a lady was with them. The customer was so nice as Miss 3 found her when she realized we were no longer at checkout.

Miss 3 went up to this customer and told her she was lost. The customer waited with her for a minute or two before Mr. 8 arrived to get her. To make sure Miss 3 got to me, the customer followed my children out of the store.

I thanked the customer and apologized as I had forgotten Miss 3 was out of the cart. The customer was glad to help, and I was so proud of Miss 3 for being brave when we got separated. I apologized to Miss 3 for leaving her and told her how proud I was that she found help immediately.

Thankfully, this is the first, and hopefully, the last time, I will exit the store without all three of my children when they are with me. Getting lost in the checkout line happens to adults as well as to children.

Had I paid more attention, I would have discovered Miss 3 was out of the cart. However, I was dealing with coupons, receipts, and rain checks, and the cart was pushed in front of me to the van.

As you save your family money and watch the savings at the register, remember your children without getting lost in the checkout line. Keep paying attention!

Question: Have you ever accidentally left a child somewhere?

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts: Good Grade Rewards

February 27, 2014 by Tracy

Though we are well into the third quarter of the school year, we finally stopped by our Krispy Kreme Doughnuts location for Mr. 8 and Miss 6 to get their good grade rewards from second quarter.

Each quarter, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts will rewards students for each “A,” “B,” “E,” or “S” earned on their report card with a FREE original glazed doughnut up to a limit of 6 doughnuts per child.

As my children have more than 6 subjects, they each receive a half a dozen doughnuts.

Usually our Krispy Kreme Doughnuts gives each child his own box. But today, the employee chose one large box with a dozen original glazed doughnuts for both of them to share. 🙂

If you have a Krispy Kreme Doughnuts location near you and your child has earned an “A,” “B,” “E,” or “S,” then take the report card to redeem his good grades for up to 6 original glazed doughnuts. Happy earning!

Question: What additional good grade rewards are available to your children?

Hump Day: Just Take a Breather

February 26, 2014 by Tracy

Photograph credit: Microsoft Images

Happy Hump Day! Having just completed the Blogelina Commentathon, whereby I read and commented on 58 posts written by bloggers of all genres, I’m in need of a lull.

This week has been busy with attending a school observation, taking a meal to a friend, dealing with a broken range, and completing the blogging event.

Coming up at the end of the week, we have a field trip, an oral presentation, a trip to Bruster’s for PJ Day, and a tearful goodbye to Miss 6’s teacher, who is about to have her first child.

With all these changes and emotional highs and lows, it is good to just take a breather.

Ah!

In using time wisely, I am planning to go to bed early tonight to get some extra rest before diving into the rest of the week.

If you are finding yourself extra busy, then try scheduling an early bedtime to re-energize yourself for the tasks ahead. You won’t regret the extra sleep. 🙂 Happy Hump Day!

Question: How busy is this week for you?

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